Your Pitch Deck Outline

Every pitch is unique, but every pitch deck should – at a minimum – share the below information:

What problem are you solving? Tell them why there is a need for your product.

How does your product solve the problem? Describe your solution to the problem.

How big is this market? Define the number of customers, the cost of the problem to those customers, and the price you’ll charge for implementing the solution (define the market value of the solution to the potential consumers). Use verifiable 3rd party sources for information.

What is the competitive landscape? Characterize the competitors and identify your competitive advantages.

Who is on your team? List the members of your team and clearly distinguish their ability / experience in applying your solution to the problem in your market.

How will you (and the investor) make a return on investment? Specify a business model demonstrating your team’s ability, despite competition, to monetize the solution your company provides the market to address the problem.

The above list is just for the quick pitch, below are additional items you should add for longer presentations:

Give the potential investors a taste – not a long oration– on the look and feel of your product or service so they can visualize the solution.

Define your go-to-market strategy, including a clear plan to reach your target market and demonstrate a rational proposal on the cost of gaining this market share. Investors usually balk at, “Our product is so wonderful that we’ll capture 20% market share with no marketing budget.” Research the costs and likelihood of market penetration success based on objective research and make an honest presentation.

List your milestones – What will you accomplish, how, and when? Investors like to see a pathway for progress and a continuing series of value inflection points.

Outline your use of proceeds, letting them know clearly how the money they invest will be spent. Make sure the use lines up with the go-to-market strategy you defined.